Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Wining at the end of the year...

The Goddess of Wine took off a couple of weeks from writing this month because this time of year always stops me in my tracks. Like pretty much everyone, I've been musing on the year that's passed; great moments, terrible losses, everything in between. This year we've lost some dear friends, and happily, made some new ones. We've seen some great theater and some dreadful. Attended some wonderful events, and some...not so much. Like all years, a mix.

This was the year I got my shoulder fixed after damaging it a second time. The first was saving a case a wine from falling at a LearnAboutWine event 5 or 6 years ago, rupturing my rotator cuff in two places; the second was this April, pulling my chair up to my desk and ripping my long-head biceps tendon. Six months post-surgery, I'm doing great, with full rotation and upper arm strength returned.

This year JD also had some relatively minor knee surgery after tearing his miniscus earlier in the year. I fear that this is just the precursor to a full knee replacement, but we'll see how his recovery continues.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Wineaux of the Goddess December Meeting - Jerez/Sherry!

After much discussion about how to finish up 2013 - the Year of Regions - the Goddess and Xochitl agreed to do a slightly different tasting: Sherry paired with tapas, one for each wine. Now Sherry isn't something that I run into a lot. In fact, I don't actually remember tasting any Sherry in my life except for the Sherries that were presented in the Spanish wine certification class I took back in 2010, so this was going to be a bit of a stretch. Between discovering just how complex and interesting all these different Sherries are, and Xochitl's perfect pairings, it turned out to be a remarkable and delicious evening.


Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Wining by Proxy...DM Vineyards & Partners Portfolio....

When the Goddess of Wine can't break away from the earth job, First Acolyte JD steps in to cover special wine events. Here are his notes from the DM Vineyards & Partners Trade and Press Portfolio Tasting at the Villa Restaurant in Woodland Hills on December 2nd.

The elegant Villa restaurant is located on a corner in the west San Fernando Valley and has had a number of incarnations over the years. While its address is on the busy Ventura Boulevard, the business actually extends deeply up the side street. This event was on their patio behind, so I can’t say what the restaurant proper is like inside, though from the pictures on their website (http://www.thevillawoodlandhills.com) it looks quite nice. The patio is sunken, paved in used brick with iron fencing and gates, a fountain in the rear upper section and wonderfully grown in with vegetation that secludes and protects from the sun. A fine array of appetizers was set out for the tasting. Judging by that sampling, I would certainly like to try their main menu.